Make in India Week: New textile policy likely to be out by April

The new policy aims to achieve $300 billion textile exports by 2024-25 and create an additional 35 million jobs.NEW DELHI: Government may unveil the new national textile policy by April this year, Union Textiles Minister Santosh Gangwar said today.

The new policy aims to achieve $300 billion textile exports by 2024-25 and create an additional 35 million jobs.

"The long-awaited National Textile Policy is nearing finalisation and is likely to be issued before the end of April 2016," he told reporters at a seminar during the Make in India Week here.

The minister said consultations with all stakeholders are in progress, confident that the policy will be released during the upcoming Budget session of Parliament.

It also seeks to address concerns related to skilled workforce, labour reforms, attracting investments in the textile sector and providing a future road map for the textiles and clothing industry.

Keeping in view various domestic and international developments in the textile industry and the need for a road map, the Ministry of Textiles had initiated the process of reviewing the National Textiles Policy, 2000.

Addressing the seminar, Gangwar said areaspecific schemes have been formulated for the entire textile value chain.

The government has also sharpened its focus on reducing transportation cost, which has come down by almost 2540 per cent for cotton seed.

He pointed out that the ministry has given approval to 24 new textile parks.

On Regional Trade Block Agreements such as Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP), the minister said the government is working towards a Foreign Trade Agreement (FTA) with the European Union and holding discussions on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

The government is also in the middle of reviewing existing trade agreements such as Indo-ASEAN FTA and Indo-Korea Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement.

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